Dr. Orlando J. Buria, 69, of Buffalo, New York, formerly of Ypsilanti, Michigan, passed away peacefully on August 14, 2026, at Trinity Health Ann Arbor Hospital. He was born October 9, 1956, in Highland Park, Michigan, the son of Orlando and Eva (Geddes) Buria.

Orlando had the blessing of finding his calling early. He had a love for learning and an even deeper love for his Maker. He loved the world God created, and he couldn’t help telling you about it. Teaching was innate to him — the best use of his God-given talents and his most genuine way of being of service.

He married Laura on June 15, 1979, and the two of them set out on a shared life of service, first attending and then serving at the former Faithway Baptist College and Faithway Baptist Church School. Their first son arrived in 1984, his father's namesake, though he went by Joe to spare everyone the confusion. Noah followed in 1988 and Nathan, the youngest, in 1993. He was a loving father, and his sons grew up inside Orlando's ministry rather than at the edges of it.

At home he was the same man, just with less chalk. There were bike rides, and competitive family game nights where he would play words at Boggle that no one had ever heard of. He was undefeated. And in that window in the summer when every Buria could finally catch a breath, road trips across the continental United States.

He gave nearly fifty years to two ministries: about thirty at Faithway Baptist Church School in Michigan, then twenty at West Seneca Christian School in Buffalo. Laura taught in both. He taught science, math, and probably every other subject except P.E. Dr. Buria also served as college professor, principal, administrator, and most recently academic dean. None of those titles got him out of the classroom, and he never wanted them to.

He could get your attention, and more importantly, keep it. He understood that as a gift from his Creator and was committed to doing the most with it. Orlando sang, conducted the choir, and gave music lessons. He performed gospel magic and ventriloquism. He met with science clubs and took students on dozens of field trips. He found children with real ability and stayed with them for years, long past any obligation.

Orlando was also, perpetually and most literally, a student. He took courses from more than twenty colleges and universities and never stopped studying. Beyond his Ed.S. and his Ph.D., the exact count of his educational and professional certificates has passed on with him. His family lost track years ago. He collected books by the shelf-load, textbooks especially, the kind most people are relieved to be finished with. He collected rocks and fossils. He kept up with creation science. He watched the sky, and late in life he took up ham radio and worked his way to the Amateur Extra license, the highest the FCC issues, so he could talk with strangers on the other side of it — he wanted to expand his reach to talk about Jesus. He played the violin and taught others to play. He spoke Spanish and, of course, he taught that too.

That was Orlando's pattern. Learn a thing thoroughly, love it, and then hand it to someone else. The teaching was essential, but the hope behind it was that you would come to love the thing yourself and pass it on in turn.

That cycle continues now in the hundreds of students he taught, in the sons he raised, and in the granddaughter whose pinky he was wrapped around. Lessons outlive their teachers. And because his was a ministry and not only a career, he goes with the hope that he will see his students again.

He is survived by his loving wife of 47 years, Laura Buria; children, Joe (Sara) Buria, Noah Buria, and Nathan (Kitty) Buria; granddaughter, Ximena Buria; sister, Bonita “Bonnie” Buria; and many nieces, nephews, relatives, and friends who will miss him dearly.

The family will receive friends from 1 to 5 pm Sunday, August 16, 2026, at Stark Funeral Professionals. A visitation will also be held at 10 am Monday, August 17, 2026, at Faithway Baptist Church, followed by the funeral service at 11 am, with Pastor Scott Estell officiating. Orlando will be laid to rest at Hillside Cemetery in St. Clair, Michigan.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial gifts be made to West Seneca Christian School, toward a scholarship in his name and the continued work of teaching he gave his life to: WestSenecaChristianSchool.com/donate.